Recent Progress in Iron-Based Microwave Absorbing Composites: A Review and Prospective

With the rapid development of communication technology in civil and military fields, the problem of electromagnetic radiation pollution caused by the electromagnetic wave becomes particularly prominent and brings great harm. It is urgent to explore efficient electromagnetic wave absorption materials to solve the problem of electromagnetic radiation pollution. Therefore, various absorbing materials have developed rapidly. Among them, iron (Fe) magnetic absorbent particle material with superior magnetic properties, high Snoek’s cut-off frequency, saturation magnetization and Curie temperature, which shows excellent electromagnetic wave loss ability, are kinds of promising absorbing material. However, ferromagnetic particles have the disadvantages of poor impedance matching, easy oxidation, high density, and strong skin effect. In general, the two strategies of morphological structure design and multi-component material composite are utilized to improve the microwave absorption performance of Fe-based magnetic absorbent. Therefore, Fe-based microwave absorbing materials have been widely studied in microwave absorption. In this review, through the summary of the reports on Fe-based electromagnetic absorbing materials in recent years, the research progress of Fe-based absorbing materials is reviewed, and the preparation methods, absorbing properties and absorbing mechanisms of iron-based absorbing materials are discussed in detail from the aspects of different morphologies of Fe and Fe-based composite absorbers. Meanwhile, the future development direction of Fe-based absorbing materials is also prospected, providing a reference for the research and development of efficient electromagnetic wave absorbing materials with strong absorption performance, frequency bandwidth, light weight and thin thickness.     

Surfactant-Mediated Ultrasonic-Assisted Extraction and Purification of Antioxidants from Chaenomeles speciosa (Sweet) Nakai for Chemical- and Cell-Based Antioxidant Capacity Evaluation

In this study, a surfactant-mediated ultrasonic-assisted process was used for the first time to produce an antioxidant-enriched extract from Chaenomeles speciosa (Sweet) Nakai (C. speciosa, a popular fruit grown widely in the temperate regions of China). Ultrasonic treatment at 51 °C and 200 W for 30 min with sodium dodecyl sulfate as the surfactant led to a phenolic yield of 32.42 mg/g from dried C. speciosa powder, based on single-factor experiments, the Plackett–Burman design and the Box–Behnken design. The phenolic content increased from 6.5% (the crude extract) to 57% (the purified extract) after the purification, using LSA-900C macroporous resin. Both the crude and purified extracts exhibited a significant total reducing power and DPPH/ABTS scavenging abilities, with the purified extract being more potent. The purified extract exerted significant antioxidant actions in the tert-butyl hydroperoxide-stimulated HepG2 cells, e.g., increasing the activities of superoxide dismutase and catalase, while decreasing the reactive oxygen species and malondialdehyde levels, through the regulation of the genes and proteins of the Nrf2/Keap1 signaling pathway. Therefore, the extract from C. speciosa is a desirable antioxidant agent for the oxidative damage of the body to meet the rising demand for natural therapeutics.     

Lipase-Catalyzed Phospha-Michael Addition Reactions under Mild Conditions

Organophosphorus compounds are the core structure of many active natural products. The synthesis of these compounds is generally achieved by metal catalysis requiring specifically functionalized substrates or harsh conditions. Herein, we disclose the phospha-Michael addition reaction of biphenyphosphine oxide with various substituted β-nitrostyrenes or benzylidene malononitriles. This biocatalytic strategy provides a direct route for the synthesis of C-P bonds with good functional group compatibility and simple and practical operation. Under the optimal conditions (styrene (0.5 mmol), biphenyphosphine oxide (0.5 mmol), Novozym 435 (300 U), and EtOH (1 mL)), lipase leads to the formation of organophosphorus compounds in yields up to 94% at room temperature. Furthermore, we confirm the role of the catalytic triad of lipase in this phospha-Michael addition reaction. This new biocatalytic system will have broad applications in organic synthesis.     

A novel thin-layer chromatography-based method for Brazilin quantification

JPC – Journal of Planar Chromatography – Modern TLC - Brazilin, a constituent of the Chinese medicine heartwood, exhibits pronounced anti-tumor effects. To date, brazilin quantification...     

Structural and Electronic Influences on Rates of Tertpyridine−Amine CoIII−H Formation During Catalytic H2 Evolution in an Aqueous Environment

In this work, the differences in catalytic performance for a series of Co hydrogen evolution catalysts with different pentadentate polypyridyl ligands (L), have been rationalized by examining elementary steps of the catalytic cycle using a combination of electrochemical and transient pulse radiolysis (PR) studies in aqueous solution. Solvolysis of the [Co^II−Cl]⁺ species results in the formation of [Co^II(κ⁴-L)(OH₂)]²⁺. Further reduction produces [Co^I(κ⁴-L)(OH₂)]⁺, which undergoes a rate-limiting structural rearrangement to [Co^I(κ⁵-L)]⁺ before being protonated to form [Co^III−H]²⁺. The rate of [Co^III−H]²⁺ formation is similar for all complexes in the series. Using E_1/2 values of various Co species and pK_a values of [Co^III−H]²⁺ estimated from PR experiments, we found that while the protonation of [Co^III−H]²⁺ is unfavorable, [Co^II−H]⁺ reacts with protons to produce H₂. The catalytic activity for H₂ evolution tracks the hydricity of the [Co^II−H]⁺ intermediate.     

Electrical actuation of dielectric droplets by negative liquid dielectrophoresis

This paper presents an electrical actuation scheme of dielectric droplet by negative liquid dielectrophoresis. A general model of lumped parameter electromechanics for evaluating the electromechanical force acting on the droplets is established. The model reveals the influence of actuation voltage, device geometry, and dielectric parameter on the actuation force for both conductive and dielectric medium. Using this model, we compare the actuation forces for four liquid combinations in the parallel-plate geometry and predict the low voltage actuation of dielectric droplets by negative dielectrophoresis. Parallel experimental results demonstrate such electric actuation of dielectric droplets, including droplet transport, splitting, merging, and dispending. All these dielectric droplet manipulations are achieved at voltages < 100 V_rms. The frequency dependence of droplet actuation velocity in aqueous solution is discussed and the existence of surfactant molecules is believed to play an important role by realigning with the AC electric field. Finally, we present coplanar manipulation of oil and water droplets and formation of oil-in-water emulsion droplet by applying the same low voltage.     

Design,synthesis, and insecticidal activities of novel diamide derivatives with alpha-amino acid subunits

A series of diamide derivatives containing α-amino acids were designed and synthesized. These compounds were evaluated for their insecticidal activities against Plutella xylostella, Mythimna separate, Myzus persicae, and Tetranychus cinnabarinus. Most of the title compounds containing an l -phenylglycine skeleton were endowed with good activities at the concentration of 500 mg·L⁻¹. Compounds ( R)-A6 showed a potential value for further optimization as an insecticidal lead with the LC₅₀ value of 86.8 mg·L⁻¹.     

Direct synthesis of 3,5-diaryl-1,2,4-oxadiazoles using 1-(2-oxo-2-arylethyl)pyridin-1-iums with benzamidines

An efficient domino protocol for the synthesis of 1,2,4-oxadiazole derivatives from readily available 1-(2-oxo-2-arylethyl)pyridin-1-iums and amidine hydrochlorides was developed. In this practical approach, N-acyl amidine precursors were formed firstly via a simple nucleophilic substitution, without the purification of N-acylamidine intermediates, and the following intramolecularly dehydrative cyclization gave 1,2,4-oxadiazole derivatives in the presence of I₂/K₂CO₃/DMSO, which exhibited excellent functional group tolerance and proceeded under simple experimental conditions.     

Mechanisms of a Cyclobutane-Fused Lactone Hydrolysis in Alkaline and Acidic Conditions

Searching for functional polyesters with stability and degradability is important due to their potential applications in biomedical supplies, biomass fuel, and environmental protection. Recently, a cyclobutane-fused lactone (CBL) polymer was experimentally found to have superior stability and controllable degradability through hydrolysis reactions after activation by mechanical force. In order to provide a theoretical basis for developing new functional degradable polyesters, in this work, we performed a detailed quantum chemical study of the alkaline and acidic hydrolysis of CBL using dispersion-corrected density functional theory (DFT-D3) and mixed implicit/explicit solvent models. Various possible hydrolysis mechanisms were found: B_AC2 and B_AL2 in the alkaline condition and A_AC2, A_AL2, and A_AL1 in the acidic condition. Our calculations indicated that CBL favors the B_AC2 and A_AC2 mechanisms in alkaline and acidic conditions, respectively. In addition, we found that incorporating explicit water solvent molecules is highly necessary because of their strong hydrogen-bonding with reactant/intermediate/product molecules.     

Facile Synthesis of 2H-Benzo[h]Chromenes via an Arylamine-Catalyzed Mannich Cyclization Cascade Reaction

A simple arylamine-catalyzed Mannich-cyclization cascade reaction was developed for facile synthesis of substituted 2H-benzo[h]chromenes. The notable feature of the process included the efficient generation of ortho-quinone methides (o-QMs) catalyzed by a simple aniline. The mild reaction conditions allowed for a broad spectrum of 1- and 2-naphthols and trans-cinnamaldehydes to engage in the cascade sequence with high efficiency.